A move has been made to overhaul 14 DEMU trains that have remained inoperative for years as one set has been repaired using local expertise at Tk 5.0 million only.
Official sources said the Chinese supplier company sought Tk 50 million, which is almost the cost of a new DEMU (Diesel Electric Multiple Unit) set, for the work.
But local engineers did the same and saved Tk 45 million. The BR imported 20 sets of trains at Tk 6.5 billion from Tangshan Railway Vehicle Company of China in 2013, which were supposed to be in service for 35 years.
Sources said the Bangladesh Railway (BR) on Thursday sat in a meeting in this connection after successful trial run of the first overhauled DEMU set.
The meeting decided to form a committee to assess the conditions of all the inoperative ones.
It has planned to assess the condition of the train sets first as they went inoperative at different times. They might have multiple problems, according to a meeting attendee.
After the assessment, the official said, the BR might take short-, medium- and long-term plans to overhaul this new kind of Chinese-made train.
Moazzem Hossain, a BUET professor in civil engineering, appreciated the move and said this proves the need for attaching importance to research and development to reduce operating and maintenance cost by the loss-making state agency.
He also said the BR team's success in the overhauling shows the success of the applied knowledge that engineers gather after their academic knowledge.
The BR was able to operate one set after its engineers and technicians, led by a BUET engineer, overhauled it by changing the controlling system with a new module prepared by local materials.
The repaired train set is now being operated in Lalmonirhat after railways minister Nurul Islam Sujon inaugurated it on October 10.
Although the BR had been in a dilemma with its 20 imported sets in trouble for unavailability of software and parts, it could make six sets operative by changing modules of motor car.
These trains are now running in Dhaka, Chattogram and Lalmonirhat.
The rest 14 sets remain in different workshops of the state-backed train operator.
But sources said almost all sets turned inoperative gradually for not setting up dedicated workshop, adequate trained manpower and experts to repair minor faults in times as well as its use on long routes.
As DEMU trains have engines on both sides of the train, officials said, it is not needed to change locomotives.
Being a light vehicle, its fuel saving is better than traditional trains, and breaking system and speed system are easy to control.
But the trains are used for short distance with a good number of passengers.
smunima@yahoo.com